Chapter 1608: I Have a Dream, Yu Chenzi's Chapter
Yu Chenzi hurriedly looked over, only to see a rather handsome middle-aged man striding quickly into the imperial study. The most distinctive feature of this man was his beard.
His upper lip beard was trimmed very neatly, the whiskers hanging down from both sides of his upper lip without a single stray hair. On his lower lip and chin, only a wisp of beard remained, forming a fork shape.
"Meng Yungui!"
Yu Chenzi recognized him. Among the Four Heavenly Masters of the Heavenly Court, the most difficult to deal with was Meng Yungui.
Yu Chenzi was in charge of Yankang's diplomacy and had studied the Four Heavenly Masters, the Four Heavenly Kings, and the Four Color Emperors of the Heavenly Court. He also had some understanding of powerful ministers like the Seven Dukes, the Three Masters, the Supreme Chancellor, and the Junior Assistant.
In Yankang, he had a dedicated team that researched the personalities, hobbies, weaknesses, psychology, families, and backgrounds of the powerful ministers controlling the Heavenly Court, building dossiers for each influential official.
He knew a great deal about Meng Yungui. This man was of human origin from Yuhua Heaven. He had ascended to godhood from Yuhua Heaven, served as an official in the Heavenly Court, then entered the Daoist school to study, taking the Daoist Sect Leader as his teacher to learn the art of calculation.
His attainments in the art of calculation were extremely high; he could be said to be the top expert in calculation within the Heavenly Court.
From this perspective, Meng Yungui was Yu Chenzi's senior uncle. After all, Yu Chenzi came from a branch of the Daoist sect, the Qingyun Heavenly Daoist Sect, and the Heavenly Court's Daoist Sect Leader was the founder of the Qingyun Heavenly Daoist Sect.
"Chaos calculation deals with chaotic data, yet one must find a high probability within the chaos, requiring fuzzy computation. Trying to scheme against Senior Uncle Meng Yungui is truly too difficult. His calculation skills are extremely profound."
Yu Chenzi quickly stepped forward, bowed to Meng Yungui, and said, "Yu Chenzi of Qingyun Heaven pays respects to Senior Uncle Meng!"
Meng Yungui looked at him coldly and said, "You are a disciple of the Qingyun Heavenly Daoist Sect? What audacity! Daring to flaunt your calculation skills before me, acting as a persuader for Celestial Venerable Mu, trying to fool His Majesty! Your Majesty, kill this wretch first to consecrate the banner!"
Celestial Venerable Hao smiled and said, "Heavenly Master Meng, Yu Chenzi is your junior nephew. Why do you want to kill him the moment you meet?"
Meng Yungui quickly knelt and bowed, saying, "Your servant studied calculation under the Daoist Sect Leader. Daoist calculation excels at computation. I also studied the art of painting under Star Lord Wenchang for a hundred years, having a hundred or so gods and demons proficient in painting secretly observe Celestial Venerable Mu, sketching every detail of his demeanor and expressions. Your servant's understanding of Celestial Venerable Mu even surpasses Celestial Venerable Mu's understanding of himself! Celestial Venerable Mu is the type who won't shed tears until he sees the coffin. As long as there is a glimmer of hope, he will fight to the death! And that man stops at nothing; all his expressions and postures can be faked!"
He swept his cold gaze over the gods and demons in the imperial study who were skilled in painting: "These painters are all useless gluttons. Trying to discern Celestial Venerable Mu's mindset when he wrote the surrender letter from between the lines of the letter is a fool's dream! Celestial Venerable Mu can already fake his emotions, infusing false feelings into calligraphy and painting. Not a single word he writes can be trusted!"
His gaze then fell on Yu Chenzi, and he sneered, "Celestial Venerable Mu sent him here to put on an act! The best course now is to kill Yu Chenzi first, put his head in a jade box, and send it to Celestial Venerable Mu!"
He raised his palm high and made a chopping motion in the air, saying, "Your Majesty should then have Celestial Venerable Xu wipe out half of Yankang's population as a warning, telling him, 'This is the price for fooling Your Majesty!'"
Celestial Venerable Hao frowned.
Yu Chenzi smiled faintly and said nothing.
Meng Yungui said loudly, "Your Majesty, only by combining kindness with authority can the world be at peace! To deal with Celestial Venerable Mu, one must kill the chicken to scare the monkey!"
"I'm afraid he might smash the jade and break the tiles."
Celestial Venerable Hao shook his head. "Heavenly Master Meng, a Celestial Venerable Mu without any restraints is the most terrifying Celestial Venerable Mu. You want me to wipe out half of Yankang's population at once, but have you considered that he is still the Indestructible Great Mage? If pushed too far, he could resurrect those people, reignite his Dao heart, and fight me to the bitter end. What then?"
Meng Yungui raised an eyebrow, about to speak, when Celestial Venerable Hao raised his hand and said calmly, "What I want is a Celestial Venerable Mu who is like a walking corpse, whose Dao heart is shattered. Pushing too hard might instead reignite his fighting spirit. If he abandons Yankang and leads Ling, Yue, You, Lang, and others in a desperate fight, heh, who in the Heavenly Court can claim they will come out unscathed?"
He stood up and paced back and forth. "You have never understood one principle. I don't just want to kill the man and destroy his heart; I also want to gain the greatest benefit! What I want is not only for Celestial Venerable Mu's Dao heart to collapse and shatter, for him to kneel at my feet, but also for a complete Yankang!"
Meng Yungui frowned.
Celestial Venerable Hao tossed the surrender letter over and laughed, "Take a look at Celestial Venerable Mu's surrender letter. A shattered Yankang is worthless, but a surrendered Yankang can ensure my realm's peace for ten thousand generations!"
Meng Yungui unfolded the surrender letter and read it carefully. When he reached the line "Your servant has already slept," he couldn't help but frown.
"Heavenly Master Meng, you have calculated the flow of heavenly coins and are deeply troubled by the Heavenly Court's economic woes, thinking that the heavenly coin system might collapse and not last a hundred years."
Celestial Venerable Hao clasped his hands behind his back and said leisurely, "If the heavenly coin collapses, the myriad realms will surely rebel. Not only do you have a headache, but so do I. However, once Yankang falls into my hands, this pit of heavenly coins can be filled! Not only can it be filled, but I can also completely control the economy and resources of the myriad realms! Control the economy, control the resources—who can still resist me?"
Meng Yungui closed the surrender letter, visibly moved, and said, "Your Majesty means to take the opportunity to annex Yankang and completely dominate the myriad realms? Your Majesty's grand strategy and talent far surpass your servant's."
Celestial Venerable Hao laughed, "Your vision is too short. You don't sit in my seat, so you can't see these things."
Meng Yungui pondered, "If Your Majesty controls the economy and resources of the myriad realms, how could the other Celestial Venerables be willing? The resources of the Southern Heaven are in the hands of Celestial Venerable Fire, the resources of the Eastern Heaven are in the hands of the Emperor Emeritus, the resources of the Northern Heaven are in the hands of the Empress Dowager, the Xuan Du is in the hands of Ancestral God King, and the Western Heaven is in Your Majesty's hands. How could they hand over their great power?"
Celestial Venerable Hao sneered, "As long as I control Yankang, they will have no choice! Back then, the Emperor Emeritus rebelled against the Creators, borrowing the power of other ancient gods to eliminate them and sit on the throne of the Heavenly Emperor. He enfeoffed the lords, dividing the universe among those ancient gods who had rendered meritorious service, causing them to carve out their own territories and leading to endless wars. But I will not follow his example!"
He took a long breath. "I want to be the eternal Heavenly Emperor. I cannot follow his example of enfeoffing lords and causing future turmoil! By controlling Yankang and stabilizing the heavenly coin, letting Yankang manufacture everything for the Heavenly Court for free, while the myriad realms supply Yankang with resources, the circulation of heavenly coins will have no obstacles. The other Celestial Venerables will only have empty territories and empty power, but the one who truly rules the myriad realms will be me alone!"
Meng Yungui's body trembled slightly. "Controlling Yankang is a crucial step, but Your Majesty, the other Celestial Venerables will surely want a piece of the pie..."
"Share with them?"
Celestial Venerable Hao let out a derisive laugh and said leisurely, "Who dares touch the meat in my bowl? Whoever touches it dies! I am different from the Emperor Emeritus, different from Ancestral God King, Celestial Venerable Xu, and Celestial Venerable Fire. The Emperor Emeritus treated humans as food for demigods and ancient gods, and also suppressed the human race. Ancestral God King, Celestial Venerable Xu, Lang Xuan, and the others enslaved the human race, also treating them as food. This led to constant human resistance, which is why Carefree Village and Yankang came into being. But I am different."
"I treat Yankang as a labor force. As long as Yankang works for me and stops resisting, I will give them food to eat and a way to survive. They may not turn the tables and become masters, but they can still live."
Celestial Venerable Hao laughed, "Heavenly Master Meng, do you now understand what I am aiming for?"
Meng Yungui bowed and said, "Your Majesty's talent and strategy are far beyond your servant's reach."
Celestial Venerable Hao laughed heartily, waved his hand, and said, "You may all withdraw. The envoy may also retire and rest. At the enthronement ceremony, you will present the surrender letter before the rulers of the myriad realms. I want everyone in the world to know that Celestial Venerable Mu has submitted!"
Yu Chenzi quickly bowed and said, "Your Majesty is wise and enlightened!"
As everyone walked out of the imperial study, Meng Yungui walked ahead. Yu Chenzi quickly trotted to catch up and said in a low voice, "Thank you, Senior Uncle, for showing mercy."
Meng Yungui was noncommittal and said, "It wasn't me showing mercy, but His Majesty. If His Majesty wasn't willing to lift his hand, no one could lift it."
Yu Chenzi smiled slightly and said, "Regardless, without Senior Uncle's appearance, Celestial Venerable Hao wouldn't have been able to make up his mind."
Meng Yungui glanced at him. "I know all your thoughts, and I know all of Celestial Venerable Mu's thoughts. It's nothing more than buying time. Just now, you heard His Majesty analyze his own heart. What do you think?"
Yu Chenzi said solemnly, "Celestial Venerable Hao as the Heavenly Emperor is wiser than the Great Emperor, wiser than Tai Chu! Blocking is worse than channeling; he deeply understands this principle!"
"Then you still want to rebel?"
Meng Yungui lowered his voice, wanting to speak forcefully but not daring to. "Since he is a wise ruler, why not simply surrender? His Majesty has already left a way out for the human race!"
Yu Chenzi looked at him with a smile. "Senior Uncle, in the ancient era, the Great Emperor was also a wise ruler. In the primeval era, Tai Chu was also a wise ruler. Celestial Venerable Hao, placed in the ancient era or the primeval era, would have done better than both of them. But after seeing Yankang, you will know—they are outdated."
Meng Yungui frowned deeply.
"We have seen something better. Emperor Yanfeng, Emperor Yanxiu—either emperor did better than Celestial Venerable Hao."
Yu Chenzi said unhurriedly, "Emperor Yanfeng shattered the gods in the people's hearts. Emperor Yanxiu developed the people's livelihood and welfare. Celestial Venerable Mu wants gods to serve the people. This word 'people' actually means the common folk. Gods serve the common folk; the common folk are all living beings. Celestial Venerable Hao has only made minor modifications to the ruling policies of the Great Emperor and Tai Chu. What Yankang is doing is true reform!"
"We have already stood up, and we don't want to kneel again, don't want to be slaves anymore! We want to control our own destiny!"
"Senior Uncle, I have a dream. When I met Celestial Venerable Mu, this dream was triggered. It excited me so much that I couldn't sleep all night, moved me to tears, and filled my heart with a warm force that encouraged me. No matter how difficult, no matter how dangerous, I must fulfill this dream. Even if it costs me my head, even if it costs me my life!"
A smile appeared on Yu Chenzi's face, and his eyes were bright. "Even if I am cursed in the future, I will still do it!"
Meng Yungui stopped walking and looked at him with a complex gaze, as if looking at his younger self.
Once upon a time, he too had a dream. But after arriving at the Heavenly Court, that dream gradually shattered, and he had no choice but to disguise himself.
This young man from the Daoist sect made him see the original aspiration he had lost.
"You won't win."
He left these words behind, quickened his pace, and left Yu Chenzi behind.
Yu Chenzi smiled, watching his retreating figure. His voice was a little hoarse as he murmured, "Generation after generation, they have been fighting for this dream. From Celestial Venerable Yu, from Celestial Venerable Yun, from Emperor Chi and Emperor Ming, from the Supreme Emperor, from the Kai Emperor, to now, to Celestial Venerable Mu, to Yankang. We have never given up, Senior Uncle. The human race has never given up, Senior Uncle..."
Meng Yungui walked even faster, fleeing into the distance as if escaping, not daring and not wanting to hear his words.
His words were heresy; they would shake his heart.